


Sweet Nothings

by army_of_angels



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Derek Hale Deserves Nice Things, F/M, Good Alpha Derek Hale, M/M, Pre-Slash, Stiles Stilinski is a Nice Thing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-21
Updated: 2020-08-21
Packaged: 2021-03-06 14:53:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,931
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26020714
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/army_of_angels/pseuds/army_of_angels
Summary: The pack may all get along now but Derek is still the odd man out. It's the little things like Stiles asking 'how are you' and genuinely wanting to know the answer that mean everything to him. 5+1
Relationships: Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 14
Kudos: 434





	Sweet Nothings

**Author's Note:**

> I don’t have anything to do with Teen Wolf or the referenced: La Croix, Chevrolet, Jeep, Starbucks, and M&Ms.
> 
> Not super important but for context: Season 2 happened but then everything more or less settled and Derek got the chance to breathe and be a better Alpha. Jackson stayed, no Allison, and this spans throughout their whole Senior year.

  1. _How are you_



Friday pack nights actually start as soon as the Betas get out of school. Erica is first, making her presence known with an obnoxiously loud ‘hello’. She’s accompanied by Boyd who in contrast just nods his head while their backpacks thud to the ground. The year has barely begun but most of them already have senioritis.

It’ll just be the three of them for a couple of hours until lacrosse practice ends. The couple stick to themselves, as usual, just turning on the TV. Jackson had had it delivered at the beginning of the summer, grumbling about it being a necessity but also not asking for any recompense. 

Derek turns back to his laptop, trying to tune out the noise, content having his pack close by. Isaac comes home next with a few cheerful comments to his pack mates and a more subdued ‘hi’ to Derek. Isaac does at least lean into him for a second to let the Alpha scent-mark him before heading off to shower.

That's his cue to start dinner, knowing the rest aren’t far behind now. Jackson, Lydia, and, surprisingly, Scott arrive together. The co-captains are discussing how they’re going to run the upcoming try-outs even though the season doesn’t start for another few months.

Neither think to acknowledge Derek and immediately join the others on the couch. Lydia doesn’t either but she does come into the kitchen. He gets an imperious sniff over the pan of stir fry he’s making before she helps herself to a La Croix in the fridge.

Stiles isn’t here yet; he’s probably stopping by the station to see his dad before inevitably crashing at the loft overnight. Derek tells himself that the antsy feeling he has is due to not having his entire pack in his eye-line, safe in his den and not due to Stiles’s specific absence.

The teen in question does show up eventually. Like Erica, Stiles unnecessarily yells a general greeting to the room. He then makes a beeline for the kitchen, though, sidling up to Derek while rambling about the amazing smell and how starving he is.

Derek raises an eyebrow at him when Stiles actually stops to breathe and says, “Hello to you, too, Stiles.”

Stiles rolls his eyes but he’s grinning when he replies, “Hi, Sourwolf, how are you today?”

* * *

  1. _Are you alright_



They finally corral the creature into a convenient clearing in the Preserve. Fucking Halloween always brings unfriendlies out of the woodwork. The ‘wolves immediately form a circle around it, with Lydia and Stiles on guard but hanging back.

Derek let’s himself feel a flash of pride at how well training has paid off. If Derek had it his way, Stiles would stay safe at the loft since he gets scraped up just tripping on air, but there are some arguments even an Alpha can’t win.

The creature does put up a pretty good fight, though, and everybody is getting a bit banged up. Thankfully, the ‘wolves at least contain it well enough that the other two are unscathed. They try to keep Lydia’s banshee screams for emergencies only since it tends to impair the entire pack along with whatever they are trying to take out.

Stiles is adept with a gun and proficient in hand-to-hand combat but those skills aren’t always effective against the supernatural. Although, he does casually show up sometimes with new varieties of bullets which is both impressive and terrifying.

Finally, Isaac strikes the killing blow and, luckily for them, the thing disintegrates. Scott voices that same thought, whooping about no clean up duty tonight. The teen immediately double checks with Derek that he’s good to go and runs off saying something about getting ready for a date.

Derek first praises his pack on a job well done, Erika preening a little at the attention, before making his rounds to check on everyone. He hovers over Boyd, applying pressure to a gouge in his leg while the skin knits itself back together underneath.

Most of them are in pretty good shape, though, and he settles for scent-marking and doing a little pain pulling for them. Derek just spends a little longer with Jackson since his kanima make-up makes him heal a bit slower than everybody else.

Derek turns to Stiles last, confident that the human hadn’t managed to get himself injured this time. Even so, he holds Stiles’s shoulders and thoroughly scans him front and back while the other ignores him, digging through his backpack instead, before Derek’s satisfied.

“Dude, chill, I didn’t even get in on the action.” Stiles takes the liberty to grab Derek’s arm and uses a baby wipe to clean the blood off the already smooth skin. “The real question is, are _you_ okay?”

* * *

  1. _Away from the flames_



It’s times like these that Derek really wonders how is life turned into this. He’s driving the Camaro to the beach in late-November with Lydia and Jackson in the back seat. The two more pretentious pack members had commandeered his car so that they wouldn’t have to ride in the rickety Jeep.

Everybody had shown up at the loft around noon with packed bags and wouldn’t leave him alone until he had agreed to accompany and drive them. At least Stiles and Jackson were also reluctant to go, the former whining about being woken up to be a chauffeur and the latter whining about having better things to do. Both were whining about how cold it was going to be.

Apparently it was Erica’s idea and she had roped everybody else into it just that morning. Boyd and Scott said that they had packed everything that was needed but Derek had grabbed a book for himself and an extra throw for Stiles just in case. They may live in California but they were in the northern half of the state and it _was_ technically winter.

Somehow Scott cajoles Stiles into at least rolling up his jeans and putting his feet in the ocean. Stiles barely touches the water before nope-ing right back to the blanket and Lydia. The ‘wolves are warm enough, even the slightly more cold-blooded Jackson, but Derek was a never a fan of swimming. None of his family had been but maybe that was a born ‘wolf thing.

Rather, he and Lydia read while Stiles does one of those Sudoku puzzle books. The others come to shore a few times for breaks or to dig around in the bags for snacks. Eventually, though, they all emerge and grab their stuff while Isaac moans about how hungry he is.

Derek is thrown off guard when, instead of going to the cars, they stop halfway there at the fire pits. He shuffles uncomfortably while everybody else eagerly pulls out bonfire supplies. Derek thinks about excusing himself but his Betas look so excited and even Boyd is smiling, saying that he’s never made s’mores before.

Actually, the only person who isn’t enthusiastic is Stiles. He’s looking around at everybody with a frown, smelling disappointed for some reason. Maybe he had wanted to be home for dinner with his dad? Instead of settling in the sand, the Sheriff’s son is inexplicably grabbing a blanket and putting some water bottles and snacks into one of the bags.

Scott quickly gets the fire going, sparks quickly turning into a blaze, and Derek suddenly feels paralyzed by the sight and smell. Dimly, he acknowledges that he is somehow moving away from it, though. It takes him an unclear amount of time before he realizes it’s Stiles gently but firmly tugging him down the beach.

“C’mon, Der, it’ll be easier to see the stars away from the light.”

* * *

  1. _Happy birthday_



Since most of the pack celebrated Christmas, they planned to have a party on the 24th so that they could all spend the 25th with their families. They had already gotten a tree for the loft and just had to pick names for Secret Santa and sort out who was bringing what food.

Laura and Derek hadn’t had the heart to celebrate without their family and then last year there was so much shit going down that he didn’t even realize that the day had passed. He knew this year was going to be bittersweet.

Derek was warmed at the thought of spending the day with his pack but this would be the first time in four years that he’d be celebrating the holiday. It just made the seven (he included Uncle Peter in the count) holes in his chest feel even more painful.

At least it was normal for him to celebrate on Christmas Eve because his family always celebrated his birthday on the 25th. Laura had insisted on still giving him a cupcake every year but maybe this year he could just use the day to grieve.

It’s not like anybody even knows it’s his birthday. Derek refuses to feel hurt that nobody’s ever asked even though he knows all of theirs – he’s the Alpha, it’s part of his job. Isaac had already accepted an invite to go to the McCall’s, anyway, so he’ll be alone.

Stiles will be alone, too. Derek was surprised to learn that the self-proclaimed brothers don’t spend the day together even if the Sheriff was working, which was usually the case. Derek briefly thought about inviting him over but figured Stiles would rather be left to his memories otherwise he would be at Scott’s place.

Soon it’s Christmas Eve and it’s actually less melancholic than Derek expected. The food is all really good actually but later Derek comes to the bleak realization that it’s probably because most of the pack members are latchkey kids and thus have had lots of experience. 

They exchange Secret Santa presents and Derek receives a Starbucks gift card from Scott, which is…fine. He doesn’t drink coffee but their brownies are good, at least. The rest of the day is pretty much just movies and more food and one of their rare puppy piles. It doesn’t quite feel like Christmas to him but it is really nice, even when everybody tiredly files out the door, leaving a huge mess behind.

The next day, Derek lets himself sleep in instead of going for his usual run. It takes him a second to actually realize that the reason he woke up was because somebody had entered the apartment building. Recognizing Stiles’ heartbeat coming up the elevator, he swings out of bed, pulls on some sweatpants, and goes to see what the other guy could have forgotten yesterday.

A plate is unceremoniously thrust into his hands upon opening the loft door. There’s a metal bowl placed upside down on it and the whole thing is wrapped in a frankly excessive amount of plastic wrap. Wary but curious, Derek brings it into the kitchen while Stiles trails him, murmuring something about cleaning supplies.

Derek claws through the plastic and lifts the bowl off, almost dropping it in surprise. It’s a chocolate cake with a border of yellow M&M pairs, interspersed with a blue, a green, and a brown pair. There’s an actual lump in his throat when he sees the red pair in the center.

Derek looks up and Stiles is just casually holding a roll of garbage bags, smiling at him fondly, and it’s so _nice_ that it hurts a little.

“Happy 21st, Birthdaywolf.”

* * *

  1. _You choose your family_



Derek, Erica, and Boyd are at BHHS to cheer on their pack members at the lacrosse game – well, Erica is cheering. Derek is bored out of his mind, not that Boyd’s cross-country meets are much better; why couldn’t any of them play something interesting like basketball?

The one time he had brought a book, though, Stiles and Isaac had pouted all night. Call him weak but the game is much less painful than seeing those two look like he kicked their puppy.

Derek has figured out the game enough to see that the Cyclones are struggling a bit tonight. He can hear Scott constantly yelling out encouragements and the guy is playing as hard as he can while still passing as human.

The third period is just ending when Boyd nudges him and draws his attention to the edge of the bleachers. Derek does a double take at the sight of Peter. His hackles are immediately raised, having had a few brief but negative interactions times with Peter since the resurrection.

Derek can never forgive him for killing Laura but the zombie still manages to worm his way under his skin since he _is_ the only other Hale left. Derek would have torn anybody else to shreds already but somehow his uncle’s cutting remarks always have him cowering.

Peter makes his way over, charmingly asking the kid next to Derek to slide over a smidge. Derek is tense and it’s obviously traveling through the pack bonds because the half of the pack on the field is paying more attention to him than to Finstock’s tirade.

His uncle doesn’t actually stay long and infuriatingly deflects Derek’s probes with banal small talk. The man clearly hasn’t lost his flair for dramatics since it seems he just wanted to make his presence in Beacon Hills known before slinking back into the shadows.

The Cyclones lose, so Erica and Boyd head out while Derek waits for Isaac to get dismissed. Stiles actually makes it out of the locker room first and heads over to him, mimicking his lean against the Camaro even when Derek pointedly glares at him.

“Y’know Isaac thinks of you as his big brother, right?” Stiles remarks, seeming oblivious to his irritated mood.

Derek nods, cranky and confused.

Stiles continues, “Well, he also calls Mr. Lahey his ‘sperm donor’, as opposed to his ‘dad’. Scott does the same with his father and yet calls me his brother. Blood doesn’t mean family, Derek. You get to choose who to let close to you and therefore who can hurt you.”

* * *

_+1. Wherever you are_

Derek is miserable. The pack voted on how to best celebrate their graduation and unfortunately a night at Jungle won by a landslide. His glare and body language are pretty good deterrents but there’s still an obnoxious amount of brave drunks with zero sense of space or shame hitting on him.

On the bright side, at least he doesn’t have do deal with any of the Betas getting trashed or caught underage drinking. The ‘wolves aren’t wasting their money when the alcohol has no affect, Lydia knows her limits and wouldn’t be caught dead losing her composure, and Stiles has always been quietly yet fiercely uninterested.

Derek’s honestly kind of impressed with their resolves at coming here because all his senses, save taste, are being absolutely assaulted. He’s only made it this long by treating the night as a training exercise that he would make his betas do. Derek focuses all of his senses to try and single out each one of his pack mates heartbeats and scents as precisely as possible.

The only problem with that exercise is that he’s hearing some things he really doesn’t need to be privy to. He’s unfortunately used to hearing Erica and Boyd together but he is not used to witnessing the newly single Jackson’s cringey pick-up lines.

Probably worst of all, though, is hearing similar lines being used on Stiles. A lot of the people delivering them have been annoyingly attractive, as well, and Stiles has danced with a few of them.

It’s not surprising – the guy is magnetic even before you get to know him, but it still pisses Derek off. He was pathetically happy that Stiles at least kept coming to touch base with him every once in a while.

Stiles is in fact making his way over again and Derek greedily inhales, trying to mask all the disgusting club smells with Stiles’s scent. It’s tainted with whoever he’s been dancing with, though. In his annoyance, Derek almost misses the graduate asking if he wants to head out.

He immediately says no, feeling guilty, because he knows Stiles is the type of person who can’t truly have fun unless everybody is. But even if Derek tried to pretend, nobody would believe that he was enjoying himself here.

“C’mon, man, I’m bored and hungry. I guarantee that the pack won’t even notice if we ditch them.” Stiles insists, grinning.

Derek scoffs. “You are not bored; I know how excited you were to go out. I’m fine here, Stiles, go dance, you don’t have to cater to me.”

“Since when do I cater to anyone?” Stiles gives him an unimpressed look. “I honestly didn’t really care _what_ we did; I just wanted to celebrate with the pack. I had fun getting ready with Jackson and Isaac, dancing with the girls and cock-blocking Boyd, and even successfully wing-manning for Scott.

I was excited that you decided to come with us, but let’s be real, this is not either of our scenes. So. You + me + milkshakes and curly fries?”

Derek’s breath catches a little as Stiles unconsciously looks up at him through his lashes, strobe lights making him beautifully iridescent. Stiles takes his lack of answer as hesitation, though.

“If you actually even want company, that is. But we can go somewhere else, too.” For a guy who throws himself head first into any situation, Stiles suddenly looks nervous and vulnerable. “I just want to be wherever you are.”

Derek has always relied more on actions than words so he takes Stiles hand and leads him out of the club.

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to make all six of them basic questions like the first two (how are you/are you ok) but then I couldn't think of others so I hope this was still ok! And I didn't want to put candles on Derek's cake after just talking about his fire trigger thus the M&Ms as the pack's eyes if that made sense.
> 
> Also, Derek stocks his kitchen with all the pack's favorites and got La Croix for Lydia but now he buys it for himself, fight me


End file.
